What Could Have Been
by InTheCompanyOfDragons
Summary: An AU of what could have happened if Dean had not picked Sam up at Stanford.


Prologue:

Dean hadn't seen his father in weeks. He knew the last place he was was Jericho California. Everything told him his father was in trouble, and he needed to go find him. His first instinct was to go and get Sam from Stanford, he was going to California anyway, and he could really use Sam's help. Dean parked in front off the building he knew Sam lived with his girlfriend, but he couldn't bring himself to go inside. Sam was happy there, who was he to come and screw up his life after 4 years? Dad told him to leave and stay gone, and he did that. With a heavy heart, Dean drove away.

After he had ganked the woman in white in Jericho he pulled over to a little roadside bar to grab a drink and think. He had dad's journal, but no dad, and that meant his dad wasn't coming back anytime soon. He had no one; all his family had left him. He picked up the newspaper sitting on the bar and looked at a small article on the front of the paper. He dropped it and ran to the car. The headline read: FIRE IN PALO ALTO APARTMENT ONE DEAD. He recognized the girl's name, Jessica Moore. Sam's girlfriend, and he hightailed it to Palo Alto. He searched everywhere, looking for his little brother, but all his friends told him that Sam had left town the day after the fire. He called all the hunters he knew, and told them to keep on the lookout for his wayward brother. Most of them had known Sam as a kid, and were worried about his safety. He searched for Sam, and came up with nothing. His dad was no where to be found, all he sent was text message with co-ordinates telling Dean where the next hunt was he should get to. Dean passed them on to other hunters, for now his only priority was Sam. Nobody else mattered. It took two years before Dean would have any answers.

Dean was getting frustrated; every time he felt like he was closing in on Sam the little brat would find a way to give him the slip. All he knew was that Sam had been hunting, and that definitely was not what Dean was expecting. Sam had never hunted alone before, and it scared the hell out of him that he had been doing that for two years without any back up. His phone rang

"Hey Bobby, have you heard anything?" Bobby was like family to the Winchester's, he wanted Sam back as much as Dean did.

"Dean…" the voice on the other end said. It wasn't Bobby.

"Dad? Is that you?"

"Yeah Dean it is, I know where Sam is."

"Where?"

"Apparently Joshua ran into him, outside of Vegas a couple nights ago. He is clearing out a vampire nest, told Josh he didn't need help."

"He didn't need any help? Who the hell clears out a vampire nest alone? Who the hell does he think he is?"

"I don't know Dean, all I know is you are closest to him, so go get your brother, and bring him back to Bobby's. We will be waiting here." Dean heard the phone click.

"Good to hear from you too Dad." Dean called Joshua and got the address to the farm the vampires were living at. They weren't exactly modest digs for a nest. He heard a scream come from the barn, it had been six years, but he would recognize that scream anywhere, his little brother was in there and he was obviously hurt. He went into the barn and there were bodies everywhere. Judging by the decapitations, Sam had gotten most of the vamps before they got him but there were still three standing over Sam and by the marks on Sam's neck, they had obviously been feeding on him.

"What are you?" The female vampire asked Sam. "You're blood, it tastes funny." Sam laughed in a cold way that reminded me nothing of the Sam that had left six years earlier.

"Well then you better stop drinking it, you never know what might happen."

"No, I like it, it has a different taste, but a good one, almost like a special kind of vampire heroin. We may need to keep you for a while; I wouldn't want to waste something as special as you."

"Sorry, but you can't have him." Dean said stepping out of the shadows. "He has places to be." The vampires turned and rushed him, he took down the first one easy, but the second one got the machete out of his hand and pinned him to the ground. As he was fighting to keep the vampire away from his carotid, Sam got out of his bindings and cut the vampires head off from behind. Sam dropped the blade and fell to the ground. Dean went over to his brother and looked him in the eye for the first time since Sam was eighteen. Now at twenty-four Sam had grown. He was taller and he had gotten muscular. Dean had expected that, what he hadn't expected was how cold his brother's eyes were. They were hardened in a way Dean had never seen them, and it scared him. "You've lost a lot of blood Sam."

"I'm fine Dean." Sam said.

"Lets talk about it in the car." Sam seemed reluctant, but nodded. Dean helped Sam back to the car, and put him in the passenger seat.

"Where are you taking me Dean?"

"To Bobby's, him and Dad are waiting for us."

"How did they know where I was?"

"Joshua called, told them he talked to you." Sam groaned.

"Asshole, I told him to keep his fucking mouth shut."

"He knew we were looking for you, of course he wasn't going to keep his mouth shut."

"He neglected to tell me that… why are you here Dean?"

"Because you're my brother Sam. I have been looking for you for two years, ever since…"

"Jessica burned to death?" He said it with a sharpness to his voice.

"Yeah, when I found out about the fire I headed straight to Palo Alto, but you were gone. I didn't think you had started hunting again." Sam looked at him strangely.

"You really have no idea what happened do you?" Dean looked at his brother.

"Guess not. What happened?"

"You think I started hunting again because I wanted to? I started hunting again because on November 2nd I woke up and my girlfriend was burning, on the ceiling above my bed." Dean stared at Sam, and pulled the car over to the shoulder.

"What are you saying Sam?"

"I am saying that Jessica and Mom were killed by the same thing."

"What was it Sam?" Sam looked away from Dean.

"Look Dean I am tired, and I would really prefer to tell this story once, so if you are going to insist on taking me to Dad, at least wait to hear this." Dean wasn't a patient guy, but he didn't want to push Sam away so he nodded and got back on the road and kept driving, it would be at least twenty hours before they got to Sioux Falls and he had no intention of stopping.

"Sam?"

"Yeah Dean?"

"I am really sorry about Jessica, and I am sorry it has been so long, I have missed you being around."

"Thanks Dean, and that was my decision, it wasn't you fault. I have missed you too." They didn't speak after that, but it was a comfortable silence. Sam slept most of the way, but Dean didn't mind. Sam looked like he hadn't been sleeping a lot lately. Dean sped all the way to South Dakota, and made it there in eighteen hours. That was a new record. When Dean woke Sam up, he was weak, maybe from the blood loss, maybe from exhaustion he wasn't really sure, either way he helped Sam get inside Bobby's and put him on the couch in the living room. He went back to sleep instantly. Dean could hear Bobby and John talking in the office and went in to face his father, a man he hadn't seen in two years. Bobby and John looked up at Dean.

"Did you find him?" John asked.

"Yeah, he is laying on the couch, he lost a lot of blood, but he should be okay. How you been Dad? What brings you back now? Dean was more then a little bitter; he could have used John's help searching for Sam all this time.

"I know what killed your mother, and I want you and your brother to help me find him."

"Good Sam is gonna want in on this, apparently whatever killed mom also killed his girlfriend two years ago."

"Yeah, I kinda figured, there were signs all over Palo Alto the week before Jessica."

"Signs of what exactly?" John looked at Bobby then at Dean.

"Demons. Well one demon actually. A demon with yellow eyes."

"Azazel." They all turned and Sam was standing behind them in the doorway. "His name is Azazel."

"Glad you are okay Sam." John said. Sam nodded, he seemed very uncomfortable with being here. "How do you know that? I do not even know his name."

"I've met him." Dean couldn't believe what he was hearing. What the hell had happened over these last 2 years? Sam looked at Dean. "I've met a lot of demons lately, stop looking at me like that."

"Do you know why he did it?" John asked.

"Yes, but so do you." Sam stared hard at John. "He came for me, but not just me. He went after a lot of kids. And when someone interrupted him, he killed them."

"Interrupted what?" Bobby asked. Sam didn't know how to answer that.

"He came after children with certain abilities, psychic abilities and then for the most part he left us alone for 22 years. Then one day, he brought us all together in a town called Cold Oak."

"You aren't psychic Sammy." Dean said. Sam smiled.

" A lot has changed since you have last seen me Dean. I saw Jessica's death, for days before it happened. I saw the other psychics die, in my dreams, in visions."

"Where are the other psychics now?" Sam walked toward the window and stared out at the junk yard.

"I killed them." Sam answered quietly.

"Sam, they were people!" Dean yelled.

"I know that Dean, but that was the deal. Azazel brought all of his special children together, for a giant fight to the death, the last one standing won; you are looking at the winner. Unfortunately with winning came a great cost. I got more abilities, of course they only work on humans and demons." Sam lifted his hand and began to turn the pages of a book half way across the room. "And some objects." Everyone stared at Sam and nobody knew what to say. Sam laughed painful laugh. "Shouldn't one of you be throwing holy water on me or something?"

"Sam, this isn't possible there aren't any psychics in our family, something like that has to be inherited." John said.

"See dad, that's the problem, it is inherited, it just isn't from your blood or moms blood, it is from the demon blood. Azazel fed me his blood that night, fed all of the children his blood. You are looking at a human tainted with demonic abilities. I haven't been pure humans since I was 6 months old." John didn't know what to say, Bobby seemed ready to perform a full on exorcism if he had to, but all Dean could see was his little brother.

"Sammy, this happened because none of were making sure you were safe, I don't care what you can do, you're my brother." Sam nodded like he didn't quite believe what Dean was saying. Then he looked over at John.

"Stop looking for the demon dad, I killed him 6 months ago in a graveyard in Wyoming. He is gone. But if that isn't enough for you, his blood runs through my veins, if you need to kill something demonic, a part of him, I am the last part, I won't fight you." John looked at his youngest and couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Can you still die Sam?" Dean was shocked by what his father was saying.

"Yes dad, I can."

"Then you aren't demonic, if a regular gunshot can still hurt you, you are human, and I won't you son." Sam visibly relaxed.

"Thanks Dad."

"Alright boys, I got a salt and burn to do a couple of towns over, you can stay here as long a you like." Bobby said.

"I am gonna come with you Bobby, give these two some time to catch up." John replied and they both walked out of the house. Sam and Dean went out to the front porch, and sat down with some beers. Dean didn't know what to say to Sam.

"Why did you go hunting alone Sam?"

"Honestly? I wasn't sure you would want me to come back, I mean nothing ended well when I left."

"A lot was said that day Sam, but you have to know Dad didn't mean a word of it. He missed you everyday, we both did." Sam sat silently listening to his brother. "Can I confess something?"

"Okay?"

"I was at your apartment on Halloween two years ago. I wanted you to come with me to help find Dad, but I figured you would shoot me down, so I left you alone, I am sorry I left you alone." Sam laughed.

"I would have come with you if you had of asked, but it wouldn't of changed what happened." Dean looked up at Sam. "C'mon Dean, I know you, you are trying to find a way to blame yourself for this, but it isn't your fault. Jessica was going to die that night no matter what you did, or what I did."

"But I don't understand why, why go after Jessica?" Sam downed the rest of his beer before he answered.

"Azazel told me once that I was the horse he was betting on. I had grown up in the life, I knew about the evils of this world. Easier to work off of that then a civilian. I think he killed Jessica because she was making me more human. I was becoming mild mannered and normal. Her death released a darkness in me Dean, a darkness that I have trouble controlling sometimes. He wanted the surviving psychic to lead the demon army, so after Cold Oak, I took off. I may be a monster, and I may have evil inside me, but I will never lead that army."

"I believe you Sammy, but you aren't evil, you are the best of all us." Sam smiled at his brother.

"Well, at least one thing came of this, The demon is finally dead, and all of us lived through it."

"I think I can live with that ending, as long this time you stay here with us, and never disappear on us again.


End file.
